Corn-husker.



B. GRONKE.

CORN HUSKER.

APPLICATION FILED mm: 9. 1913.

Patented May 15, 1917.

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B. GRONKE.

CORN HUSKER.

APPLICATION FILED-JUNE 9,1913.

Patented May 15, 1917.

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BARNEY GRONKE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINGIS, ASSIGNOR T0 INTERNATIONAL HARVESTECOMPANY OF NEW! JERSEY, A COR'BGRATION OF NEW? JERSEY.

CORN-HUSKER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, BARNEY GnoNKE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Corn-Huskers, of whichthe following is a, full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates to corn huskers.

It has for its object to agitate in an improved manner the ears fed tothe husking rolls of a husker. A. further object of my invention is toguide the ears fed to the bushing rolls in an improved manner. I attainthese objects by providing improved means operatively connected to theoperating mechanism of the husker and movable thereby in planes parallelto the axes of the bushing rolls to agitate the ears dropping thereonfrom the hopper; the agitators moving through improved ear guides ordeflectors acting to deflect ears between the active surfaces of thehusking rolls.

In order that my invention may be clearly and fully disclosed, I haveshown in the accompanying drawings one embodiment 'which it may assumein practice, illustrating the same in connection with a combined huskerand shredder. t is, of course, to be understood, however, that theconstruction shown herein is susceptible of modification and use inother relations.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine equipped with my improvement.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 22 of Fig. 1. I

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the husking rolls shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. a is a detail view in elevation of one of the agitators.

The construction shown, when broadly considered, comprises a frame 1having a plurality of husking rolls 2 journaled therein and rotatedthrough suitable power connections from a suitable pulley 3 to husk theears fed thereto from the snapping rolls 1; suitable agitators 5 of animproved construction also operatively connected to the power pulleybeing movable through improved ear guides or deflectors 6 to distributethe ears to the husking rolls in an improved manner hereinafterdescribed.

The frame 1 may obviously be of any desired construction. In the formshown herein, it is of the type used in connection Specification ofLetters latent.

Patented May 15, 1912.

Application filed June 9, 1913. Serial No. 772,477.

with combined huskers and shredders and is of substantially rectangularconstruction. The husking rolls 2 are journaled therein in suitablebearings and are disposed parallel to each other and at an angle to thehorizontal as in the usual construction, being operatively connectedthrough gearings 7, 8, etc, to the power pulley 3. (Fig. 1.) As in theusual construction, one of the husking rolls of each set is resilientlymounted, being provided with a horizontally disposed spring 9 whichtends to force the same over toward its coeperating roll. (Fig. Further,as in the usual. construction, the upper ends of the huslring rolls arebrought substantially beneath the snapping rolls lcurried on the up perpart of the frame 0ppositc the platform 10, likewise driven from thepower pulley 3, so that the ears snapped from the stalks and fed in fromthe platform 10 may be guided to the husking rolls by a suitable apron11. Further, a chain and sprocket connection 12, 18, operativelyconnected to the power pulley 3 and the bushing roll rotating shaft 14,is provided to drive the feed chains 15 feeding the stalks to thesnapping rolls, while an additional chain and sprocket connection 16 isprovided to operate the screen. (Not shown.)

In my improvement the agitators 5 are operatively connected throughsprockets 17 with the feed chains 15 in such a manner that the movementof the feed chains, and therefore the power pulley 3, is transmitted tothese agitators. As shown in Figs. 1 and 1. each agitator issubstantially triangular shaped, being provided with a curved elongatededge 18, and is attached at one of its corners to a short stub shaft 19journaled in the frame substantially beneath the apron 11 and the upperends of the bushing rolls and at one side of the same. In a preferredform a laterally extending sleeve 20 is preferably formed integral witheach of the agitators 5, which is adapter.. to fit over the inner end ofeach shaft 19 and be attached thereto by a pin 21. Further, elongatedbearing brackets 22 are provided upon the parallel horizontally disposedframe members 23 which inclose the bodies of the shaft 19 and supportthe same in alinement. Upon the outer end of each shaft 19 a crank 2a isprovided which is pivotally connected at 25 to a pitman or link 26 uponthe outside of the husking chamber which extends upwardly and forwardlydiagonally across the side of the machine and is pivotally con nected atits upper end to a crank 27 upon the outer end of a shaft 28 carryingthe sprockets 17. It is to be noted that by this construction themovement of the feed chains 15 is utilized to drive the agitators, thateach agitator is independently driven through its own power connectionand that all power connections for the agitators are located outside ofthe husking chamber. It is further to be noted that as the sprockets 17are rotated, the agitators are oscillated about their pivots from thelower dotted position shown in Fig. l to the upper dotted position showntherein, or, as shown in Fig. 2, from the lower full line position tothe upper full line position; the agitators moving in parallel planesbetween adjacent pairs of husking rolls in such a manner that a constantagitation of the ears is produced, one of the agitators being always inthe raised position while the other is in its lowermost position.

The ear guides or deflectors 6 are provided between the rolls ofadjacent pairs, two of the same being shown in this construction. It isto be noted that the deflectors are substantially L-shaped and sodisposed as to bring their peaks in a line above the space between therolls and that their edges extend parallel to the surfaces of the rolls.Each of these deflectors is attached to the lower end bearing of one ofthe husking rolls by means of a vertical bracket or support 29 and isfurther slotted longitudinally at 30 near its upper end in such a manneras to enable the agitators 5 to move freely therethrough. Obviously theupper ends of the deflectors 6 may be attached to the frame in anysuitable manner. In a preferred construction they are, however, attachedto the bearings of the husking rolls in substantially the same man neras the lower ends thereof, shown in Fig. 3.

The operation of the construction shown is as follows: When the stalkscarrying the ears are fed in from the platform 10, they are carried bythe feed chains 15 over to thesnapping rolls 1-. These snapping rollsare driven from the pulley 8 through the power connections 7, 8 in sucha manner that as the stalks are fed to them the same are drawn into themachine and the ears are severed therefrom. As the ears drop from thesnapping rolls they fall down upon the apron l1 and from there slide ortumble upon the husking rolls 2. Obviously, when the stalks are beingfed rapidly to the snapping rolls, there will be a tendency for the earstoaccumulate or clog at a point beneath the same and at the upper end ofthe husking rolls. For instance, the ears are sometimes lodged or jammedbetween the sides of the frame above the rolls in such a manner that therotating husking rolls cannot grip the same. In my improvement theagitators 5, driven as they are through their pitman connection from thefeed chains 15, are alternately raised and lowered so that they willbreak up any jam which may exist and dislodge the ears, freeing them sothat they may slide down the husking rolls and be acted upon by thelatter. It is to be noted that due to the alternate action of theagitators, the ears are forced up on one side so as to dislodge them andthen are permitted to fall downward, or are given an additional impulseby the other agitator as the first moves downward in such a manner as toeffectually prevent any clogging action. Attention is further directedto the fact that due to. the shape of the agitators and the fact that nomore than the peaks of the same are permitted to pass out of the slotsin the deflectors or ear guides, no ears may be caught or broken therebyas they are brought backward and no cars may be so lodged between thesame as they are brought up as to damage the corn. Obviously, when theears have been dislodged by the agitators, they will by gravity movedown the slanting husking rolls and be acted upon by the same in thewell known manner; the deflectors 6 acting to guide the same between theactive or working surfaces of the rolls and thus so position the samethat prior to the time that the ears pass off the ends of the rolls theyare thoroughly husked.

While I have in this application described one form which my inventionmay assume an oscillating agitator supported by said frame andvibratable up and down between certain of said husking rolls, and meansfor vibrating said agitator.

3. In a corn husker, a frame, a plurality of husking rolls journaledthereon, a plurality ofoppositely oscillating agitators movable aboveand below the axes of certain of said rolls and rotatably mounted insaid frame, andmeansfor oscillating said agita tors.

4. In a corn husker, a frame, a plurality ofhuskingrolls rotatablymounted therein,

a plurality of agitators movable between certain of said rolls in aplane at right angles thereto, and means for oppositely actuating saidagitators.

5. In a corn husker, a frame, a plurality of husking rolls rotatablymounted thereon, and an agitator journaled beneath said rolls andmovable between the same in a plane at right angles to the plane of saidrolls.

6. In a corn husker, a frame, a plurality of husking rolls rotatablymounted thereon, deflectors carried above said rolls and between certainof the same, and a plurality of agitators movable through saiddeflectors.

7 In a corn husker, a husking roll, and 15 an agitator journaled beneathsaid roll and movable above the same.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in the presence of twoWitnesses.

BARNEY GRONKE. Witnesses F. A. RYTHER, H. B. SPERRY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0.

